Environmental Engineering Students Design "Chicago of the Future"

June 22, 2007

Reversing the flow of the Chicago River is considered to be one of the greatest engineering feats in the city – a move that prevented the city’s polluted water from ruining the city’s primary source of fresh water. However if a group of McCormick student have their way, the city may return to a more natural flow of water back into Lake Michigan – although with some environmentally friendly additions.

As part of the “City of the Future” design competition sponsored by Chicago design firm Urban Lab, senior environmental engineering majors Julia Hand, Siti Zuraidah Abidin, Caitlin Feehan, and Jennifer Raber developed a comprehensive view for sustainable water cycle for the city of Chicago in 2107. Their peek into a possibly greener future included several environmentally friendly improvements to Chicago’s current water management system.

The key concept in the groups work was the creation of a closed loop system for water management. By combining water drawn from Lake Michigan and water collected through green roof systems implemented throughout the city, the group was able to meet the projected demand for Chicago in 2107. A combination of several different methods of water treatment allowed the group was able to meet their need using methods that are far more sustainable than those currently in place.

The project was part of a competition held by Chicago-area design firm Urban Lab, who was competing in the “City of the Future” competition sponsored by the History Channel.

While the team focused on water management, they found that it was impossible to truly separate water, energy, and transportation. The team’s closed loop water system included filtered water from Lake Michigan for use as drinking water, recycled and collected water for other water use, and a “living machine” for wastewater treatment prior to returning the water to Lake Michigan. As part of the “living machine” wastewater treatment, water used in the city is cleaned using microbial fuel cells, which have the potential to produce electricity while filtering water, UV disinfection, and hydroponic reactors.

The team also proposed widespread use of green roofs – a concept already gaining traction in Chicago. In addition to reducing runoff of rainwater, the green roofs collect water which can be filtered and used for landscaping, etc.
The team placed second in the competition, which included teams from several other Big Ten engineering schools.